Every New Pair of AirPods Apple’s Working on Right Now
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AirPods are some of Apple's most successful and popular products, but surprisingly they receive very few updates. That's understandable, though. Most people won't go out and buy a new pair of AirPods every year like they would when the latest iPhone comes out. Don't fix it if it's not broken, I guess. That might change this year, however. Apple supposedly has big plans for the AirPods lineup this year (and beyond).
We've heard a lot of rumors about the AirPods Apple is planning to release this year and next. The biggest news is that we'll get three different sets of AirPods between 2020 and 2021. And they'll come in all sorts of sizes and prices, including a brand new pair of over-ear AirPods.
However, there are so many rumors out there; it's confusing and difficult to keep track of everything. To keep it simple, continue reading to browse everything you need to know about Apple's future AirPods lineup.
3rd-Generation AirPods (2021)
The 3rd-generation AirPods are coming, but don't expect them to drop any time this year. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, an Apple analyst and reliable source for everything related to Apple, the new AirPods will enter mass production in the first half of 2021.
If this is true, we can expect Apple to release a new set of AirPods by the end of next year. This correlates with what Nikkei Asian Review reported, saying that we won't see any updates to the AirPods and AirPods Pro will be pushed back to 2021.
As for the changes the new AirPods will have, it seems as though everything will look the same on the outside. Kuo mentioned that the third-generation AirPods' most significant change would be the adoption of SiP to replace the rigid-flex PCB+SMT design the current generation of AirPods has.
In case you're wondering, SiP stands for System-in-Package, and it refers to a bunch of circuits enclosed in one or more chips. The SiP design is the same one the AirPods Pro currently has. This could potentially mean the 3rd-generation AirPods will have a better performance or sound quality, similar to the AirPods Pro.
2nd-Generation AirPods Pro (2021-2022)
Much like the regular AirPods, the second-generation AirPods Pro won't be coming this year. Just like the regular AirPods, Apple would start the production of the AirPods Pro in 2021.
However, the production of new AirPods Pro would begin by the end of next year. This basically means that we won't see an AirPods Pro update until the year 2022.
Regarding its design, the AirPods Pro would remain extremely similar to the current generation. Again, don't fix it if it's not broken. So any major update the second-generation AirPods Pro has, it will mostly be internal.
We also expect the new AirPods Pro to keep their current price. Which might be a bit expensive, but Apple is working on some cheaper options.
AirPods Pro Lite (2020)
If having to pay $250 seems like a lot of money for a pair of AirPods Pro, then these budget-friendly AirPods might be just for you.
There have been many rumors going around about a new set of cheaper AirPods Pro supposedly called AirPods Pro Lite. Although this name is not official yet.
We don't know all the specs these cheaper AirPods will have, but it's most likely that they won't have the noise cancellation feature the regular AirPods Pro model comes with.
Although, Kuo suggests that these wearables will be a new set of Beats instead of AirPods.
The good news is that we won't have to wait much longer to find out. There are a lot of rumors that suggest Apple will release these new AirPods or Beats this month.
Jon Prosser, a reliable source and leaker of Apple's future plans and products, expects the new AirPods to come in May. Although, Prosser expected the new set of AirPods to be released along with the new MacBook Pro, which of course, didn't happen.
Also, it's worth mentioning that Prosser expects a new set of AirPods, not specifically the AirPods Pro Lite. However, another user that goes by the name of @L0vetodream on Twitter mentions that these AirPods will be "like the iPhone SE."
Although it's a bit cryptic, we can only assume it's talking about a cheap product with great specs, like what we're expecting from the AirPods Pro Lite.
Still, we'll just have to wait until Apple releases these new AirPods sometime this year to find out.
AirPods Studio (2020)
There are also strong rumors pointing to an entirely new set of over-ear AirPods. Even if we don't have an official name yet, it's expected that Apple will go with AirPods Studio.
Apple is expected to release the AirPods Studio sometime during this year. Mass production for AirPods Studio should begin in mid-2020, so we can expect Apple to launch the AirPods Studio around fall of this year.
Since we're talking about high-end headphones, there are a bunch of exciting features that have already been rumored.
As you would expect from over-ear headphones, the new AirPods Studio will have an Active Noise-Canceling feature that would be even better than the AirPods Pro.
The AirPods Studio will also come with a Transparency Mode, which will allow you to hear everything around you without taking them off.
The AirPods Studio will also have a Head and Neck Detection feature. This feature is similar to the one on the AirPods, which stops playing music when it detects you take them out of your ear. This way, when you take the AirPods Studio off of your head and place them around your neck, the music will stop until you put them on again.
Another feature, which is one of the most interesting of the bunch, is Orientation Detection. With this feature, you won't need to worry about placing your AirPods over the correct ear. The AirPods Studio will detect the left and right ears and adjust accordingly.
Finally, the price of the AirPods Studio. The AirPods Studio will likely come at a price of $349, which would make them the most expensive AirPods in the lineup.
2nd-generation Powerbeats Pro (2020)
Although they're not AirPods, Apple is planning to release a new generation of Powerbeats Pro. These are Beats earbuds, which Apple first released in 2019.
Rumor has it that Apple is working on a new set of Powerbeats Pro, although it won't be a major update. Instead, it will only have minor updates in the internals of these new earbuds.
Although we don't know exactly what kind of improvements Apple is planning for these earbuds, it's a possibility that they'll come with a noise-cancellation feature, even if it's not as good as the one on the AirPods Pro. We'd also like to see wireless charging, which is a glaring omission from the original model.
Unfortunately, besides that information, we don't know much about the new Powerbeats Pro. With that said, it's not likely that Apple will release them any time soon, considering that the company is re-releasing the current generation of Powerbeats Pro in a bunch of new colors.